Faces of Mining
FACES, CONTINUED from PAGE 17
“The week before, it was 50 be- low. Then it was in the teens and up to the 40s on the days we ran. We were fortunate. “But on the last day, crossing Norton Sound, it was a complete whiteout. We were riding bumper to bumper for six hours on the ice. You could sense open water there, somewhere on your left. Robby, our team lead, was keeping us on the GPS track. But you’re concen- trating so hard for so long and it’s so dry, my eyeballs were swollen! “It was such a blast!” And how does a race like this relate to Donlin’s goal of a future mine? The Donlin Gold project is locat- ed in the historic Kuskokwim Gold Belt of Southwest Alaska, 10 miles north of the village of Crooked Creek. It spans a geographic area larger than the size of the states of Ohio and Idaho combined. The gold is located on Calista Corpora- tion and The Kuskokwim Corpo- ration land, and when mined will be subject to 7(i) and 7(j) royalty to share amongst every other Alaska Native Corporation. “There are 62 stakeholder com- munities that we work with in the Calista, CIRI and Doyon region and we work with them all year. “We do cleanups, we provide education, we provide employment that can become a generational change in wealth. There were peo- ple from 23 of these communities represented in our workforce last year. “Our community support is a way of saying thank you.” Donlin does community pro- grams year around. “We support our communities and volunteers in everything we do. For example, the elder men- tor program, and Girl Scouts, and sports through the Alaska School Activities Association. “This can be a big part of us investing in and supporting these communities.
“I was born and raised in Nak- nek. Dad was from Lake Illiama.” Her father was and is the mentor who started her on a life of service. “Dad was on the BBNC board and raised me this way. I grew up going to meetings and being involved and engaged. I told my parents in third grade I’d decided to be lobbyist!” She left Alaska for college, earn- ing a degree in government and Native studies from Dartmouth. After a brief career outside, she returned to a career in commu- nity relations for a number of in- dustries and Native corporations, as well as owning Alaska’s largest Native-owned advertising agency, Northwest Strategies. “I started with Donlin 25 years ago,” she reflected. “Think about, we’ve been working on this 25 years! “We are a transparent and fact- based industry and company. We know it’s critically important that this work be done right. We un- derstand that. And we’ve seen time
and time again we do it right in Alaska. “Ours is a land of extreme boun- ty and we are stewards of the land. It’s a generational commitment to protection. “The reason Donlin Gold is here is because the corporations invited us. This is an Alaska Native proj- ect, and they guide everything we do. “It is a passion project for me. In my career I’ve been dedicated to companies and projects that pro- vide social and economic oppor- tunity. I grew up on a commercial fishing boat, setting nets, catching fish. This is our life, but you can’t make a living. This is a way to sup- port our kids in school, who want to live in our communities and do meaningful work. To work for us, to afford new gear, to have more time with their families, to live healthier. These are traditionally cash economies and we’re finding a way for people to work and support themselves.”
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The Alaska Miner
Spring 2024
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